Nov. 18, 2009
There are some stories I come across that make me smile.
Really. I mean that in a good way!
November is National Adoption Awareness month and Friday our local courts will celebrate National Adoption Day with more than 50 adoptions.
On that day, two Kern County men will happily oversee the final signing of adoption papers for the local families.
And it just so happens that both those men, Kern County Superior Court Judge John Brownlee and Bakersfield Mayor Harvey Hall, were adopted themselves.
“I am who I am today because of the wonderful parents who adopted me 68 years ago. I couldn’t have done any better than to receive the parents that I did,” Hall told me.
Brownlee was equally effusive.
“I think I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” he said of being adopted.
Hall, who wasn’t told until he was 12 that he was adopted, never had a bit of angst about it. Neither did Brownlee, who was told right away about his parentage.
“My mom was troubled about it when she told me,” Hall recalled. “I told her, ‘I’m so glad you and dad came along, you don’t need to fret over this.’”
His parents picked him up in Long Beach, brought him home to Bakersfield and that’s where he’s been ever since, Hall said.
“Mom and dad were mom and dad and that was just it,” said Brownlee, who grew up in Blythe riding his motorcycle, hunting and fishing. “I wouldn’t trade my childhood for anything.”
Their parents, each man said, gave them something of irreplaceable value — roots.
That sense of belonging is crucial to children of all ages, agreed Bethany Christman, Assistant Director of the Department of Human Services assigned to Child Welfare Services.
“Being adopted is about more than giving a child a place to lay his head at night,” she said. “They also get that family’s identity, their heritage, their traditions, their history.”
Kern has 2,400 children in the foster care system. Of those 600 are cleared for adoption and eagerly awaiting their forever homes.
Perhaps I’m naive, but I found that number sadly high. Particularly when you consider the county finalized 281 adoptions last year. It’s great for those 281 kids and a good job by the county.
But that still leaves an awful lot of kids living on hope.
Christman told me things are a little better these days. In the early 2000s, the county averaged 3,000 children in the system.
Still, we appear to be on the high side for our population size, according to statistics collected by the Center for Social Services Research at UC Berkeley.
Kern had 8.8 children per 1,000 of our child population “in care” in July 2008, the most recent figures available.
Looking at other counties with similar-sized child populations (about 250,000), we’re lower than Fresno at 9.1 per 1,000. But we’re higher than San Joaquin, 5.9 per 1,000; Contra Costa, 5.3 per 1,000; and Ventura, 2.9 per 1,000.
Even looking at other valley counties, which have similar demographics, we have a higher prevalence of children in the system than all but Fresno.
Christman told me comparing county data is tricky nearly to the point of being useless because approaches to child welfare differ dramatically from county to county.
“We may be tougher on drugs and take more children into custody for that while other counties aren’t as concerned about exposure to drugs,” she explained.
Either way, we clearly have an abundance of children here in need of permanent homes.
Over her 30 years of work at the Department of Human Services, Christman (who also retires on Friday) has learned to celebrate successes wherever she finds them and adoption day is a definite success.
“There are smiles all around,” she said.
“It’s a good day,” echoed Brownlee, who has one adopted child as does Hall.
“It’s a magical day for the parents,” Hall agreed. “And it’s invaluable for that child’s life.”
Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com
Adoption facts
You do not have to be married and own a home to adopt.
The county cannot discriminate against adoptive parents based on age, sex, marital status or housing.
You have to be healthy and able to support yourself and a child.
If you would like to become an adoptive parent you are required to first become a licensed foster parent, which entails a 11/2-hour orientation class followed by 27 hours of training (held evenings, mornings or weekends to accommodate various schedules) and you must be current on CPR training.
There is also an extensive criminal background check.
Please call 631-6600 or 631-6204 for more information or visit http://www.kcdhs.org and click through to its adoptions page.
Heart Gallery
In an effort to draw attention to older children awaiting adoption, Kern County participates in the Heart Gallery program where older children have photos and some information about themselves open to the public.
You can meet these children at http://www.heartgallerykc.c...
Other ways to help
You can help make a holiday wish come true for a child in foster care by participating in the Holiday Cottage, which starts today.
The Cottage has wishes of children that community members can fill and return in time for Christmas.
This year, the Cottage will be at Brimhall Square, 9500 Brimhall Road, Suite 703.
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